Fighting for the Moon
by ProjectGob
Summary: First ever fanfic, go easy on me please! Starts right at the end of chapter 235, so spoilers. I binged the series in just two days and the story sent me on an emotional roller coaster, so I just started writing. This is how I'd love for it to continue, and for the series to end. Rui X Natsuo all the way. Natsuo in New York! I don't openly trash any of the love interests #RuiXNatsuo
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

So do I...

"Really?" Said Miyabi with a sparkle in her eyes. He'd seen it quite frequently with her in recent weeks, and it was starting to dawn on him what it was. He'd had a similar look in his eyes when he looked at Hina... and Rui. Did he feel the same about Miyabi? Could he be happy with this decision? Does he mean what he just said.

Natsuo was broken from his deep thought at the loud crash and comments from fellow members of the drama club, because "so do I" was not the line in the play , and it would appear to serve as an apparent confession. Miyabi was now the color of tomatoes and went to storm off, but not before dragging Natsuo by the wrist. After a few minutes they were alone and she surprised him by placing a tender kiss to his lips. He closed his eyes and leaned into it, trying to feel it... and yet After the kiss broke, Natsuo opened his eyes and said "was that... reciting for the part... or"

Miyabi blushed again before saying "...no Natsuo... that was from me. I'm sorry I've never felt this way about anyone, honestly I've never even had a boyfriend before." This caught Natsuo by surprise... it reminded him of Rui. His eyes darkened which caught Miyabi off card, she lightly gasped

Natsuo then said "I get how you feel Miyabi, I truly do, and I do like you on some level." Miyabi seemed to be on the brink of tears "Now don't cry, listen... I thought I was over them, her, all of it. I mean, they both left me when I couldn't write... in my best interest. I know they're my family but they were my first and second love, and, I don't think I'm as over Rui as I thought. I always try to do the right thing and mess up the most important part, silly right?"

Miyabi considered this deeply for a bit before curling her lips into a deep scowl and shouting "IDIOT! First I find out you have a girlfriend but you're vague with your feelings all the time, then I realize she's your sister and you dated her AND your elder sister? Now your telling me they both left you for your own good, but Natsuo what is your own good? To be outcast by family and losing love? I may have little experience but it's pretty clear to me you're either an idiot or a coward, and right now I don't know which is worse."

Natusos eye were wide and tears were forming, realizing she was totally right. He'd always been a coward, to afraid to say what he meant, not able to trust or share. That's why his relationship with Rui failed, not because he thought she was weak, but because he knew he was. He then croaked out "what...what do I do then?"

The distressed actress thought for a few minutes and set her hand on his chest, and his onto hers, right over the heart, and said "I didn't know how deep it was... but it's very clear your heart does not beat for me; it doesn't flutter or dance for what I can offer. So what if they're your sisters? What am I saying... no, you know what, I can't talk. I must confess I was trying to figure out a way to steal you long before she left... I'm an awful person. When your girl friend was going to America I thought "what a wonderful opportunity" and I can only see now how selfish I was. Having said all of that, I think theres only thing you can do now. Fight, for Rui. You clearly didn't for your first love, you can't make that mistake again. Also if you were truly Rui's first love and after everything you did, you'd be a fool to let that go... so easily. And don't think about me, I mean I like you but... well im certain it's not love. So, go and fight for her, and if your to scared to, then... act like you aren't."

Natsuo enveloped her in a massive hug, tears poking through, and cried on her shoulder for a minute before saying "Thank you. I'm afraid I won't be able to act in the play anymore", leaving her extremely confused, and then he got up and ran. Ran harder than he ever had, until he'd reached transport; and without thinking he went to his editors residency, with nothing but an idea an a hope.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Out of all the ideas Natsuo had ever come up with, this was without a doubt the stupidest. He arrived at his editors residency at 3 in the morning, and litterally slept outside the door in a sitting position. He was awoken by a scream, followed by running and the startled calling of his name by his editor "Natsuo what the heck are you doing here and why are you such a mess?"

Natsuo felt like melting but then shook his head, and in one leap was next to the editor and grabbed both of his hands and said "I need your help! And you're going to help me! Remember how you didn't want my book released with the story? Well I have the perfect way you can help make that up to me"

His editor replied "what is this blackmail? What could you possibly need, after months of no contact because you haven't been writing!" Natsuo felt something a kin to a fire light within himself "I need you to loan me some money, so I can go to New York! Help me and I'll help you publish the greatest book I'll ever write. I have to go and fix things with... with my ex. I know it's cliche but this means everything to me."

His editor considered him for a few minutes and said "ok but... wait here a moment." And disappeared inside for about half an hour, and Natsuo didn't budge, and finally he reappeared and said "okay, if you really really need to do this, we can try it, but there's someone on the way here who's going to help. I reckon they'll be more of a help then I could."

He sat around after being given some spare clothes when he heard a car door open, he heard his editor say something like "be them" but he was kind of spacing out over the prospect of what he was about to do. Rubbing his temples he moves to emerge from the front of the residency to see "HINA...?!... and Kirihara Sensei?!"

After getting over the mock shock he felt, Hina ran over and hugged him, saying "Idiot, you know our sister, you must have... known to fight. I know what we had... I loved, well I still do love you, but you found someone else you can love; really love and that's Rui. I want to support that and if you really plan on going to New York to find her, then you have mine and Kirahara sans full support."

Kirahara winked before stating " I expect one hell of a story about this one day. As far getting there, how much have you actually planned? You look like you've been running through the forest all night." Natsuo looked embarrassed and blushed, stating he ran a long way from his drama camp; not really thinking at all.

He then turned to Hina and said "look, I need you to take care of stuff here... if you can. You can stay at the apartment, and if anyone looks for me tell them... well make something up. I have to go find her before she comes back, and fight for her. Otherwise I don't think I'll ever be happy, and it'll never work." Kirahara laughed and said "excellent, your flight is in 3 hours." ..."3 HOURS?!" Natsuo exclaimed

Natsuo began pleading with his eyes so Kirihara chimed in "well, we have an airline that typically books flights for businessman in advance if they're needed. I happen to have access to one of these seats on a flight that connects into New York, that leaves in 3 hours. I realize that's not much time but with how long the flight is you'll get there early on Friday. Then you'll hopefully be able to find her and spend the weekend doing whataever you need to." Natsuo painted an inspired look upon his face before boldly calling out, "let's go then!" Which earned a small smile from Hina. "Now Boarding flight 796, flying out of Tokyo to New York- connections in Los Angeles", called out over the intercom, and Natsuo looked towards Hina and said, "well I guess this is it, and Hina? Thank you." A small somewhat knowing but equally sad smile was on her face as she gave him a small hug and nodded, no more words needed to be spoken.

'I guess this is if, here I come... Rui' he thought to himself as he boarded the plane.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 I

t has been a few months since she returned from New Years... and broken up with Natsuo. Rui wondered what he'd be up to right now? Getting ready for bed most likely, after a long day of school or club or whatever he was up to... probably with that Miyabi girl he seemed so fond of.

She'd had plenty of time to think about how their breakup played out, and she came to the conclusion while both made mistakes, she was undoubtedly the one who was at fault over it. She'd been so hurt that he wouldn't confide in her, that he felt he needed to protect her, that she didn't even consider what he was going through. What kind of a girlfriend or even sister was she when she was so selfish? So she left him, to spare him of her troubles and pain. They'd both left him, her and Hina, under the pretext of Natsuo's benefit, so why did it... hurt so badly.

Rui blinked tears out of her eyes again, as she arrived at at work. Kajita appeared to be waiting for her at the entrance, an increasingly frequent gesture that he'd started to do, amongst other things, which were endearing in their own way. They'd been on a couple of "dates" I suppose you could call them but they'd never held hands or kissed, so ironically he was way more like a brother then... Natsuo ever was. Thinking of him always filled her chest with hurt, and that much was obvious to Kajita who opened his mouth to say "does my presence really upset you that much Tachibana San?" Pouting, she replied with "no, I was thinking about other stuff," and left it at that. As they slipped into the place they worked, he said "well you can make it up to me then. Let's go for a walk through Central Park tonight." She pondered this request for a moment, somewhat sad because honestly that's the kind of thing she would have loved to do with Natsuo had he been here, so against her judgement she said "Ok, I suppose."

After the long work day, she was ready to go home and get cleaned up, it was early evening now with the sun getting a bit lower. Exiting the building of her work place she noticed someone get out of a limo, which wasn't that uncommon, but what surprised her was when he began to approach the hotel. Whoever the man was began to get absolutely swarmed by a crowd, which was unusual. Famous guests usually took the back entrance or had security ready them a path, so whoever it was had been unprepared to be accosted by so many people. Her curiosity may have even enticed her to find out what was causing the commotion, but at the moment she had other things on her mind.

She was acutely aware Kajita had been growing feelings for her, and while he was a big idiot and has a sweet side to him, he wasn't who she loved. The brother thought came to her again, and she decided since she couldn't be mature with Natsuo she'd start here, she'd let him know that's where her feelings for him lied tonight. She didn't want anyone else to get hurt by her indecisiveness and trust issues. After a bit of navigating past the mob, she hurried to where she was residing.

After getting home, She put on some okay attire for the cool weather and then Kajita picked her up. They walked in almost total silence with a heavy air around the two of them, she wondered if it was clashing expectations. She had to say what she needed to today, no matter what. They arrived and he offered his arm to walk with, which she replied by walking on ahead of him with an annoyed face. Annoyingly he seemed to appreciate the gesture with a very light blush and a smile. They walked for a while looking at the beauty of the park, a small snowman was made by a bench as they stood by a tree, and it was peaceful.

She realized it was a full moon and felt a bit sad, fingering her necklace she was thinking of Natsuo. Kajita seemed to pickup on this, and she guessed at other times, and begged the question "why do you always fiddle with necklace when you're with me? Nervous Tachibana San?" The nerve of him, saying this entirely deadpanned and without any hint of joking, she slapped him across the face before apologizing by falling to her knees, she didn't mean to hit him. He offered her his hand to get up in reply, stating "no, it's okay. You still feel something for your old boyfriend it seems. But you've broken up now, so how do you feel about me?"

The question caught her off guard, this was exactly what she wanted to tell him, that he was a brother figure and not the kind of brother I want to date. She blushed, panicking as to what to say, when he flat out said "kiss me. It'll show... exactly how we both feel." She wanted to say no, she wanted to protest... but... but...


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The flight had been unbelievably long and nerve racking. He was here, in America, with hardly any plan other than find Rui. He really wish he would have taken up Hinas offer to help him learn more English, he only knew enough phrases to just get by. Still, he was here, where Rui was. His Rui, he realized. He hoped she still thought of him as her Natsuo. He nearly panicked when he realized he'd arranged zero transport and didn't have the slightest idea of where to go, New York City was unbelievably big with so many people. How was he ever going to find her!, but he decided he'd worry about that after he received his bags from baggage claim, and upon completion he noticed a fancy looking older driver holding a sign that read "Natsuo Fuji" he wondered if Kirihara set this up. He quickly showed the driver proof of his identity who simply nodded and beckoned for Natsuo to follow, so he did. He was dumbfounded to find he'd been hired a limo driver, Kirihara must have really wanted this story to be phenomenal. The driver, who's name was Charles, spoke in basic Japanese, "only the best from Kirihara, for a bright young author."

It dawned on him as they walked and his book of all things was in the book store, on a news shelf, and in other locations. His book must of had received an English print, and sold exceedingly well. On one hand he was excited, but then he realized he never even asked about being paid! Well, problems for later. Charles opened the rear limo door for him and after a bit of navigating traffic and driving, they were parked outside of a Hotel. Charles told him he'd been booked to be his personal chauffeur for the next month at minimum, and would take him and wait for him wherever he went, with a smile. With time to consider it, the man was probably between 50 and 60, but his hair was white and he had a sandy beard and a warm smile. He eerily looked like American depictions of Santa Clause which made Natsuo blush. He wondered where they'd stopped, which Charles seems to pick up on and said "this is a hotel with a famous restaurant . Kirihara said you'd probably want to come here first, but didn't say why. Do we need to book you a room?" Natsuo pondered all the information he'd been given, and realized that this could very well be where Rui is learning her cooking , and opened his mouth to say "no let's... let's just sit outside and watch for a few hours. I think I may be waiting for someone." Charles merely nodded and went to grab a book from his glove compartment, and took to the task of reading.

Natsuo has his eyes peeled on the entrance, when a few hours later, finally he saw her and his heart dropped. Rui...

She'd kept her hair short, and this was undoubtedly his love, and without really thinking he exited the limo which seemed to startle Charles as he dropped his book and began to shuffle, but too late. He'd exited the limo and began to approach the building when he realized maybe this wasn't the best laid plan. He was quickly stopped by a few people he'd guessed were around his age speaking stuff in English while one got out her book, which he realized was a copy of his novel, and before long a big crowd of people had swarmed him asking questions or trying to figure out what the fuss was about. He scanned the crowd for Rui but realized she hadn't fallen victim to curiosity, or she'd noticed it was him and fled which filled him with sadness. After a few minutes of being shoved ,talked at, poked and prodded, he heard a loud whistle and hotel security had dispersed the crowd, and upon conferring with Charles they whisked him inside to the receptionist.

"Novelist Natsuo Fuji, yes?" Were the words he picked up in English from the girl, so he nodded. She handed him a key and said "the hotel owners daughter absolutely loved your book, and when he learned you would be staying with his he spared no expense to give you a suite." He'd heard all of this in Japanese as they had a translator recite it to him, which was a blessing. The translator shook his hand and said her name was Kimmy, and she'd been tasked with handling communication for him while at the hotel and arranging affairs.

Feeling quite sad he'd missed Rui leaving and unsure of what else to do, he requested to go to his room and was shown the way.

Room, suite, whatever word has been used to describe the sheer expanse of a living space in front of him was not adequate enough. Here alone he had more space then they did in their entire house for 5 in Japan and it was quite overwhelming. This entire journey had been just that honestly. Just the other day he'd been preparing for a play with drama club... "the club, school, Hina, Miyabi, oh god I'm an idiot!" He shouted to no one in particular. He hasn't even looked at his phone once since arriving in America and looked down to a bombardment of missed calls, messages, and notifications on line. He melted away for a moment before mentally jotting down who would be the most important to contact immediately. Hina, probably, as she was going to cover for him... after that his parents obviously but he needed to come up with a pretty sufficient lie to explain why he was in America. He supposed Miyabi and the club president deserved some sort of call, to explain things at least a bit more properly. Sighing, he decided he'd contact Hina, let her know he was somewhat situated, and then before it got to late he'd go explore a bit before contacting anyone else.

"Here goes," he quietly said to himself before calling Hina. After 2 rings, she answered with "are you okay?!" And he began to explain his journey. After he'd finished she said "wow you already saw her... and my gosh Kirihara really has deep connections huh! I'll contact your editor about payment for your book having that success in America, so you'll have ample money, and it's lucky the owner was so amendable. Send me pictures okay? And let me know when you find her! And... and... uh be careful." All of this caught Natsuo offguard, Hina was more then ever acting like, well, a big sister would which made him smile. Then he blushed a bit and said "what's weirder, dating your brother or actively trying to get your siblings back together." She shouted "whaaaa- well... both are weird if you don't know our family. Both make perfect sense if you know us though. Make things work Natsuo, okay?" He was crying and said "yeah, I promise I will... Big sister." And got off the phone.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Kimmy had explained he'd probably want to wear something inconspicuous if he was going to travel by limo. That itself gets people thinking, and his book was a massive hit here in America so it was natural a crowd would form. So he'd settled on a black cap and and some non prescription glasses with a plain jacket, and after hearing her readily available things to do, he'd settled on visiting Central Park.

It was a beautiful night out, and the moon was full. It was honestly perfect, and felt his heart with hope and love. If there was going to be a better universal sign than a full moon, he couldn't think of one.

He twiddled his necklace at the thought again of what he'd done. He was in New York to fix things with Rui. Spontaneously, he stopped into a jeweler on the lowest floor and made a thoughtful purchase, surprised that they'd let him take it on credit. Was he really going to be rich? Gosh that'd be insane, he always wanted to live well as a writer but this was hard to believe. And the story he'd have to tell once he fixed things with Rui, the story he promised her he'd write, he had a feeling another great seller would be on its way.

itting in the limo fiddling with the purchase he'd made in between his fingers, he asked Charles to drive him to Central Park and wait for him nearby once they'd arrive. He wanted to walk in silence and think about his journey so far and what he'd actually say to Rui. Would she think he was an idiot, for dropping basically everything he'd been doing to fly across the world for his ex girlfriend. He shook his head, no this was what he had to do.

He was walking slowly around the park and noticed a big tree with a nearby bench, and there was some fresh snow amongst the grass. He decided to build a snowman like the one they'd made on their Christmas vacation together, to inspire him with hope. Once he was done he began to walk away, when something caught his eye.

It was Rui... but before he could approach her he realized she was walking with Kajita, the chef she worked with and had been in New York with all this time. There'd been many times he'd been jealous and understood how Rui had felt about him and other girls, but now his thoughts were a mess. What if they'd been together. What if she'd used New Years to leave him for this cook, what if... this was all for nothing. He decided not to approach them, to only view them and make note of where his limo was if he needed to make a quick get away. From the distance he was he could just make out her facial expressions change, and she was twiddling her necklace... and then she hit him. This surprised Natsuo, it could be taken many different ways but he didn't emerge. He couldn't really hear what was said but then, after he helped her up from apologizing... he leaned in and... and... kissed her. Under the tree, the full moon, and he realized she didn't pull away. It was at this moment Natsuos heart had broken. He was short of breath and shouted "I wanted to believe!" Before running away, removing his necklace and accidentally dropping it and the purchase he'd made earlier... and disappeared into the limo which sped away.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N In this chapter I have POV for Natsuo & Rui which will be spereated by lines for page breaks. In case anyone is confused!

Chapter 6

"kiss me. It'll show... exactly how we both feel." She wanted to say no, she wanted to protest... but... but... Kajita made contact and very quickly deepened this kiss with her, and she wanted to pull away, but she felt a pang on comfort in this, but realized it wasn't thoughts of him that brought this, she now knew she had zero feeling for Kajita at all.

Before she could say anything she heard a loud yell a bit behind her, not entirely registering what had been said, but what confused her is the words had been undoubtedly Japanese. She shoved Her fellow chef away, and he fell quickly on his rear. quickly turning around to see a man in a black hat and plain jacket sprinting away in a frenzy and was shocked. Who was it? She began to run after him briefly, to see the identity of this Japanese voice when she noticed a limo outside the park began to drive away. Oddly enough it looked similar to the limo from the hotel. Was she being stalked?

The sky darkened a bit when her foot brushed along something dropped on the ground... she picked the items up and examined them... one was a small black box you'd expect someone would put a ring in, and the other... made her gasp. It was the other half of her necklace... which meant only one thing. She fell to her knees and began to cry before punching the ground unaware of it whether it hurt or not, and she looked up to the sky to see clouds had covered up half the moon. It was a divine sign that Natsuo for some reason was here, and even though they weren't together she wasn't sure what she could do now. She knew what he'd seen, and wondered if it was fated for them to be apart, and then she cried deeply.

— Numb.

That's how Natsuo felt. He couldn't even begin to allow himself to process this, what he'd seen after what he'd done to be here. To consider if this was the true reason she left him, if they'd been doing this before they'd broken up. He didn't want to think, write, or do much of anything.

Charles drove him back to the hotel without much delay, or words thankfully, and he crept back into the hotel. Cruel realization above all else dawned on him she worked her, he'd undoubtedly run into her, but for now he needed to sleep. The receptionist asked him something he didn't hear at all but agreed to in an attempt to hurry the conversation up, and took the elevator ride to his suite. He walked in, and upon reaching the first couch he fell down face first and let sleep find him.

— Rui sat on her bed, holding the box she'd picked up with the necklace which she decided to put on. Finally, after an hour of debate she opened the small box and was amazed at that she saw. Inside was probably the most beautiful ring she'd ever seen. It had 2 big diamonds that almost appeared to make up the moon, surrounded by smaller ones that looked like snow. It reminded her of their trip together, and she cried realizing that it's true.

Natsuo was here, for some reason, and he'd bought this; a ring only she could truly appreciate. And yet... he ran away again. Between tears she sighed, that was something she couldn't blame him for. Not right now. She'd done similar things before when upset, and if he'd really travelled all this way with at least something like this on his mind... to find her... kissing someone else. Well she knew she would have ran too. She hadn't uttered a word to Kajita and had even locked her roommate out, she needed to be alone.

When she felt like this in the past it was always... Natsuo who came and saved her. But this time she'd have to find him. Where though? And was that him in the limo? Which also meant that outside the hotel... the man the crowd formed around... oh god that also may have been Natsuo. Taking a deep breath, she contemplated her actions. She could call Japan, it would be near afternoon there now. She wondered who would know where he'd gone, if he'd planned this or been a total idiot and just up and came. Part of her hoped Hina had no idea, but she had doubt that would be the case. Swallowing her pride, she called her sister.

"Rui?!" Was what she initially heard, "Hey Hina-nee, how are you?" There was a pause on the line, before Hina opened her mouth to say "it's pretty late there isn't it? What are you calling for?"

Rui no longer wanted to beat around the bush, without directly saying what she wanted, asked somewhat quietly "how's Natsuo doing?"

Another pause, this one seemed a bit longer, Hina replied "well... I... you see..." "Hina? What's going on." Rui cut her off with Hina seemed to sob a little " I wasn't supposed to tell you, but he had a realization that he didn't want to lose you... and decided he couldn't wait. He wanted to go prove to you how much you meant and left to find you in New York." Rui began to cry again, saying " so it's true then, oh god." Hina sounded concerned, " wait did you see him already Rui? He mentioned he saw you leaving the hotel but was swamped with people before he could reach you."

Rui took a minute to gather ur composure "Yes... he found... found... he found me and my co worker kissed me when he did, but I don't think he knew Natsuo was there."

Hina screamed, "you're with a co worker?! Why didn't you tell anyone." Rui quickly cut her off, " no.. Hina-nee, he likes me but he's like an actual brother to me, I planned to tell him this evening when he sprung all this on me. Before I could even talk to him I heard someone scream and run and went to go after them, and all I found was... Natsuos half of the necklace... and an... an..." Hina couldn't keep calm "a what Rui!" Rui just spit it out "an engagement ring !"


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Natsuo awoke the next morning, jet lagged and unbelievably confused. He was laying on a couch in a massive room, and slowly the previous days events were coming back to him. Rui wasn't his any longer. She'd moved on to someone who wasn't her brother, someone who shared her passions and probably never lied to her. A man she could trust.

He cried but realized this was probably for the best, if Rui could be happy, then Hina could too one day, and maybe Natsuo would find someone he could love as well in the future. Mulling this over he then fell into a panic, in his emotional distress he'd dropped their matching necklace and... the ring?! Oh god how could he just drop them. What if someone found them, what if they were lost. What was he going to do?! Thinking about the ring after calming down then brought him some sadness, as he hasn't really planned on proposing or anything, until he realized that there wasn't a point in not proposing. He knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Rui, waiting wasn't going to help him... but that's lost now.

After eating a bagel and cream cheese, he settled in figuring out a way to make his trip to New York at least salvageable. He seemed to be quite popular here due to his novel, so he wondered if he could put that to any use. Natsuo checked his phone and remembered he planned on calling other people to give a rough explanation of what he was doing, but wasn't much feeling up to it right now.

He settled on just letting Miyabi know, and then go back to sulking. He hoped she'd still be awake. After a few rings she appeared on the end saying "Fuji Kun?" Which made him feel bad. He'd let everyone down again, for nothing. "Hey Miyabi, I'm sorry I didn't really explain much. I had something I thought needed taking care of but in the end it wasn't much of anything." Natsuo choked out.

"I see, well we haven't recast you yet. Honestly every here with club has been quite worried about you. Do you think you can make it back soon? What are you doing today?" She wondered to him Natsuo began to shuffle "uh, yeah I don't think I will be back. Actually I'm in New York right no—" "WHAT" Miyabi quickly cut him off with, containing "what the hell do you mean you're in New York! Oh- you... you went to find Rui. Well then what do you mean it isn't much of anything! Didn't we just agree you'd fight for her?"

This caught Natsuo off guard, and he realized he'd once again just ran away instead of fighting and this caused him to feel deep shame. He'd still give his best for Rui while he could, it was the only way. "You're right, I have to go." Was all he said and he heard the faintest "wait" before hanging up.

This lead into him realizing that once again, he really didn't have anything planned, he'd basically only had one thing on his mind and he didn't figure he could get to making progress on that right now. A knock on his door broke him from his trance, but thankfully he'd still been dressed from the previous day. He shuffled over to the door and opened it to find Kimmy, asking him if everything had been to his liking. For the first time he smiled, even if a bit forced, and said yes. She then informed him that his event would be at 6 P.M, and before she could say anything else he cut her off by saying "event?"

Kimmy chuckled slightly, "yes, on your way in last night you agreed to do a book signing for the next few days at the hotel. The owner was most thrilled you agreed and has also asked you have dinner with his daughter at some point while in New York. I believe one of the chefs in training will be putting it on. Should I also let them know you'd be agreeable to this?" Natsuo pondered this for a minute before deciding why not, only to then ask if the dinner could be with others and not privately with his daughter. He didn't want to be vague again, especially with how behind he basically already was in the Rui race. Kimmy merely shrugged and said "that shouldn't be an issue" and took her leave so Natsuo could shower and prepare for the day.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Rui opened her apartment door to a loud banging the next morning, her roommate had finally returned and noticed Rui looked sad, which let her to chime in with "great news Rui! The hotel is going to be having a book signing with a Japanese author today! I didn't catch the name but I figured you'd like to be able to get a taste of Japan again before returning."

Rui was kind of deadpanned before thinking 'Japanese-Author-Hotel-Natsuo?' And shot off of her bed. If that was indeed the case, she'd know where to find him! As if the day was finally catching up with her she noticed a throbbing pain in her right hand, and her roommate seems to notice and gasped. All along her knuckles was dried blood and her hand was purple and swollen all over. Rui let out an an audible gasp, explaining "what have I done how will I cook!"

Her roommate scurried in and got a bandage, and set on the task of cleaning her knuckles and bandaging her potentially broken hand. She then asked "Rui, what happened to your hand?" And just thinking about it brought tears to her eyes, she wasn't ready to talk to anyone about this. "I fell down" Was all she could squeak out, and then she asked for privacy to make a phone call.

In truth, she wanted to call him. It would surely be the easiest solution and would probably solve a lot of angst, however in the moment it didn't feel right. She could probably ask the receptionist for his room number, but then thought of the crowd that had formed and realized she'd probably need a good reason. Proving they were siblings would likely suffice... but if they did... get back together she didn't want to start any unnecessary complications.

She was stumped, and concluded sitting around here wasn't going to change anything, if her idiot ex has really come all this way with... what he brought with him, then she needed to set things strait with him once and for all; one way or the other.

Rui hadn't made a conscious effort to look cute, any more then usual, but she certainly wasn't going to go there casually if she was going to visit Natsuo. On her way to the hotel he was staying, she started to think a bit more about the previous night, with Kajita kissing her and then the total silence that followed their departure from Central Park.

She was grateful she didn't have to work this weekend, she really didn't want to see him and complicate things any further then they were. She wasn't sure he'd really accept the brother comment now, and with Natsuo apparently here, her emotional state would be ruined. All that was left was to find Natsuo, she really hoped he'd been okay after running away last night.

This thought lead her back to the Crux of it all, the breakup. No matter what she said to him, in the back of her mind doubt was always creeping in and her parents commenting about Natsuo and Hina being destined to fall in love really shook her. Why not her? The more the thought about it, the more she agonized over it. Natsuo got over Hina and moved onto her, which meant logically they weren't destined. But if she left him because he was being closed off from her, would he also move on from her? Were they destined? Evidently she'd been an idiot again, because by all account she'd dropped everything he was doing to fly across to world... with a ring. That could only mean one thing. To find her kissing another man, even not entirely willingly would be heartbreaking. Would he think this is why she left? Would he think this has been going on before they broke up? She had no way of knowing as the thoughts rolled over and over again in her head as she rode in the cab over to the hotel she worked at. Where she'd find her Natsuo.

Rui arrived at the hotel and noticed it seemed much busier then usual, but chalked that up to the fact a foreign author was doing a signing. Thinking about that actually made her feel a different mix of things. Natsuo had done really well, and she felt pride. This train of thought led her to think of the story he promised to write for her... and how her actions may have caused it to never come to be.

Still, he was here now, right? At the very least, he flew across the world out of no where. It was a bit concerning for her to think about honestly, he had a life and all sorts going on in Japan so for him to come here was worrying. Also even though they weren't dating, they were still family! How could he not at least give her a heads up that he was coming. Unless he came to fix things. The more she thought about to, However, she started to piece together a different idea and realized maybe he was just here for the signing, and this could all be coincidental. Would he really just drop everything to come see her? Of course not! Whatever Hina said, she couldn't put too much stock into it, because she could just be talking a big game for Natsuo. However, saving their relationship is the only thing that really explain the ring mind you... however maybe he was just hopeful.

She would need to speak with him alone to figure everything out. It's almost like deja vu she realized, Al all over again. This time however she wasn't going to let things be drawn out. They'd already been together once, there was no doubt in how either felt, at least at that time; and unless Miyabi was really really special she doubted she would have replaced her in Natsuo's heart.

She berates herself, she's jealous at the fact the man she dumped may have found someone else. This is what the problem was in the first place, at least a part of it. She was broken from her thoughts by the voice of Kajita, which put a scowl across her face. "Tachibana kun, what brings you here on our day off?" He asked somewhat sincerely, which annoyed her even more. Her only reply was a small huff before looking away.

Kajita's eyes narrowed before he opened his mouth to say "we didn't even talk at all after last night... I figured maybe you needed some time to process but I don't understand why you're so angry. You won't even talk. What happened?" She thought for a minute, before finally settling on "all that time in the kitchen learning to cook, I think your brain may have been scrambled." And with that she walked away, before taking a small peak to see if he was following her. He didn't at first, merely watched her walk away until she noticed his eyes narrowed on her hand.

"Tachibana San, what happened to your hand?" He called out and she stopped dead in her tracks, trying desperately not to show any signs of something bothering her. She turned to look at him and quickly realized she'd failed as a few tears spilled out and she let out a quiet "nothing worth mentioning." And then continued to walk away.

She dipped into one of the bathrooms and examined her swollen mess of a hand again, and realized this was the second time unpleasant thoughts of Natsuo had inadvertently lead her to injury. He filled her mind with worry and sitting here now she was pondering whether leaving him was the right decision. Most of all, right now, she needed advice, and she had an idea of who she could call.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Hina was biting her thumb nail, what on earth had she encouraged Natsuo to go and do? Although she understood why he felt he had to do it, she felt the same sadness she always did whenever he was concerned, but she pledged herself to his happiness, and so she would do her best to help him fix things with Rui.

Thinking about her sister brought her to a pause, did Natsuo really intend to give her an engagement ring, or did she misunderstand the type of ring it was. She starts to fiddle with the ring he once gave her and tears nearly formed. He'd grown up, and honestly even though she was an adult she'd stayed the same. Still she wondered what spurred Natsuo on to do this, it was extremely out of nowhere but she decided the second she'd received a call from his Kirihara she'd do whatever it took. Part of her also wanted this for Rui, because Natsuo had been her first love. Hina may love him but she's loved others, and for, Rui Natsuo was the only one. She'd never seen Rui like or even love anyone the way she did Natsuo.

Slumping into the bed in the apartment Natsuo and her shared, she came to the realization that she'll probably have to move out before he comes back. Nothing quite ruins a peaceful reunion like "I'm living with my former lover who's also your sister." She'd for sure have to correspond with him on the matter, no assumptions this time. She was disturbed from her thoughts to a knocking on the door, and she slowly but surely made her way there. Upon opening she was greeted with her mom and step dad, realized maybe she should be wearing something less revealing.

"Mom, Fuji San, would brings you here?" Hina says with an umistakble discomfort as well as blush on her face. Her mother considers her carefully for a few moments, before saying "we were contacted by one of Natsuo's friends who said he hadn't been home in a few days. We also haven't been able to get into contact with him and were a bit worried so we thought we'd come over. Finding you here is, well, a tad unexpected…" her mother claims as she looks away slightly.

Hina merely bowed and said "It's not what it looks like. Natsuo and I aren't that way anymore I promise! He was looking after a troubled friend for sometime and I moved in to assist in that, nothing more. Fortunately the friend is doing much better and is no longer here." Her parents pondered this for a few minutes before Natuo's father said  
"Hey hey, its okay. We didn't mean to insinuate anything! Water under the bridge, the bridge i tell you. Now, with that out of the way, where is Natsuo?"

Somehow, this question made Hina even more uncomfortable. She begun to stutter "Uh, Uh, where? Oh that's right you haven't heard from him ha...ha. Where indeed"

Her mother gave an audible ahem, "That didn't answer the question at all, and honestly only raises more of them."

"Yeah i suppose that makes sense. Why don't you come inside and we can go over that? I'll get dressed." Hina simply stated. They both nodded to her and proceeded in. After getting dressed she walked in and sat with them at the table, opening her mouth to say "The truth is…. The truth is…. Natsuo is…." only to be cut off by her phone. The caller ID said it was Rui again, so she excused herself to answer. Hopefully this wouldn't add to her list of things to do.

Making sure the door behind her was secure, she quielty said "Rui is everything okay?" Rui must have picked up her hushed tone, because she replied with "Is this a good time?"

Letting out a sigh, Hina replied "It's fine, it's Mom and dad are in the other room asking questions about where Natsuo is." "Rui practically yelled "He didn't tell them?! How could he be so stupid." Hina chuckled at the response, she really did love her sisters reproach to things, before saying "Well Rui you know our dear brother, he's quite dense. I haven't really come up with a good explanation for them yet, but I'll think of something. What about you? Have you properly spoken with Natsuo yet?"

"No, I'm going to go through the line for his book signing and hopefully he'll take me off to the side to speak. I'm not really sure of what to say, which is why I'm calling you. I'm really nervous." Rui said. Hina felt her cheeks warm, her little sister despite all of this was calling her for advice. It made her happy, and so she said "Just be truthful, for one are you planning on getting back together? If you are, you may want to let Mom and Dad know when you return, because lying won't do you any good. You're both adults, and it can save both of you a lot of grief." Rui was silent for a few moments before saying with a determined hint to her voice

"Okay big sister, I'll be honest. I don't know if we'll get back together but I still love him. I need to really have a sit down and see where we stand. I love you Hina-Nee." Hina replied, simply and truly, "I Love you too, Rui." and hung up the line.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Rui exited the bathroom, spirits somewhat risen from the earlier nose dive of the day, grateful with the words from her sister. She peered from left to right to see if Kajita was nearby and was silently delighted to see that he wasn't. She didn't have anything against him personally, but sadly for them both, he liked her. She supposed it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility she should have established more clear boundaries. As upset as she was at Natsuo for confiding in Miyabi and keeping her company, she was also with Kajita every day. She was annoyed he was jealous but at the same time, she probably would have been the same way if Natsuo had to move across the world for a while and was spending each day with a girl.

Still at the time she knew deep down she had to leave Natsuo, to let time heal things and grow as a person. Was this the right time to think about getting back together? Honestly she was unsure, but at the very least he'd come here and she'd still been on his mind. That made her smile, so she cheerily moved her way back to the showroom floor where the signing was being completed.

Upon arriving, she noticed that a crowd was starting to form as the time ticking down for Natsuo's signing. She was quite nervous, proud, upset, and even a bit elated. Just a general wave of emotions she only ever felt when it came to him. If you told her just a few years ago she'd be this worked up over a boy she'd say you have her confused for Hina-nee. As the months passed, her unpleasant memories of Natsuo seemed to dissipate and honestly her good ones were highlighted. She was able to make sense of her own feelings better, and how they together could actually work things out before they became clouded. She sincerely hoped he'd come to similar realizations, because deep down she really wanted nothing more than to be with Natsuo again.

She decided she'd make use of the fact she technically worked/trained here to get a decent leg up on the line. If she had to guess he would be coming through the back hallway with security, it would be foolish to risk the front. She headed over and displayed her staff ID and explained to the guard she just wanted to get her book signed quickly, he shrugged and said she could join the staff line in the hallway he'd be entering from.

'Other staff members are interested in meeting Natsuo? Strange.' Rui thought to herself before walking through, and after a small journey down the hall she saw a few of her co workers waiting in a small group… and Kajita?! What the hell was he doing here. Out of all the scenarios she could invision this going, here being within a 100 foot radius of Kajita, somewhat secluded, when reuniting with Natsuo was probably in the top 5 worst. Picking up the pace she got within whispering range before very quietly saying, "What are you doing here Kajita? I didn't take you for the reading type." Kajita merely glanced up, with a hint of… Nervousness on his face? Before saying " Tachibana Kun, I didn't know this is why you were here today. As for what I'm doing here, it's to get this book signed." As he holds up the novel written by Natsuo. All she could do is say "Why?" Kajita smirked, saying "flustered are we Tajibana-Kun? It's a cute look for you. I'm actually doing this for you, I know you've been kind of down lately so I figured if I got you a gift you may feel better." Normally she may slightly appreciate being called cute, and the gesture was kind, but she was not at all in the mood for this right now, so she pouted at him.

"Would you leave then, as you can see I can get my own version of the book signed. I appreciate the gesture, but after last night I really don't want to see you right now. We can talk about it later, I promise," she finally decided on saying. She hadn't really known what to expect as a response, but what she got was not something she especially appreciated. He gave a scowl, and then approached her, which made her retreat until her back was against the wall. He put his arm out and against the wall so he was shielding her from looking anywhere but at him or his feet. He quietly said "A man professes his feelings for you, goes out of his way to get you a gift, and the best you can do is say 'Can you leave?'. Unbelievable Tachibana San. I feel I've been very kind and you've been rather selfish towards me. I'd like an answer to the question from last night." As this was happening commotion started to be heard coming down the hall. Was it him?

_Natsuo POV_

He was coming down a hallway to the showroom where he'd be setup to sign books and meet fans with the assistance of Kimmy his translator. He was incredibly nervous; he hadn't anticipated anything like this, and for other reasons like I don't know, he still hadn't properly met with Rui, and he's got some fancy dinner with the hotel owners daughter which certainly won't help him fix things. He broke from his thoughts by Kimmy, who explained to him the Hotel had some staff members who wanted to meet him and get books signed before he met with the general public. He naturally obliged, good to get a little bit of practice in. As they approached a group of people, he noticed the guy Rui was kissing the other night standing by a wall, and on the inside of his stance was…. Rui? His heart immediately dropped. From his distant view he couldn't really tell what they were doing but the posture made it seem like it could be kissing, and this possibility angered him. Sure she was allowed to move on, and him catching her in the park and running wasn't in her control. This however was, and if they were indeed a couple she had made a conscious decision to come to this staff only singing with her new boyfriend to flaunt him off. It was pretty clear where he stood on this and immediately steeled himself, after all he'd just play the step sister card and act like he wasn't in so much pain inside.

Just a few more steps, and he's made contact. Rui seems to notice him and shakes off her fellow cook and looks at him. Natsuo uses his little acting training to force a smile, but he knows there is no way he can replicate anything other then the dead look in his eyes that he's sure returned by now. A few of the employees that were ahead smiled and he signed politely. After about 10 minutes or so, the guy she was with approached him and greeted "Hey there, I was wondering if you could make sign this novel. I know a girl who's a fan of your work that I would love to receive it." Natsuo can seem him glance at Rui as he says it. Natsuo goes to sign the book but "accidentally" spills a water bottle on it.

"Sorry, been a long day my hand must have slipped. I'm sure you can pick up another copy of my book. Have a nice day." was what Natsuo managed to say managed, and the chef looked pissed. Natsuo dared to venture if looks could kill, he'd be dead right now. At the end, It appeared he was going to say something, probably confrontational, when security gestured at him and he turned and skulked off. The last person amongst the employee signings was Rui, his sister. Here goes nothing.

"Hey its been a bit Rui. Sorry I didn't call you, it was a bit of an impromptu trip over here to do some press with my book. It's done quite well here."

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8, counting down the seconds in his head until she speaks, a bead of sweat drips down his right temple as she finally opens her mouth,

"It's not a problem. I'm glad to see you're having success. I was wondering if you'd sign my copy of the book?" Just then their eyes met, and what he saw in hers were concern, confusion, hurt, and love. In contrast, she saw nothing. His eyes were completely dead.

Finally, Natsuo replied "Sure thing, anything for my beloved _sister, Rui._"

She looked at him critically before asking him "Is everything alright? Can we talk?" For some reason this question annoyed him, because the truth was he wasn't okay, none of this was, but he couldn't let her know that so all he said was "Yeah I'm fine. I'd love to catch up, but I have to do this signing. Perhaps afterwards, if you and your _boyfriend _don't have plans."

Natsuo then began to walk away, with Rui faintly mentioning something but he didn't hear it. His heart was pounding so erratically and loudly that it was thudding in his ear drums. He began to berate himself, just ignore it, just ignore it. Mindlessly he went up to a microphone to speak, all he had to do was address the crowd and then Kimmy would translate. All he had to do was say anything, but he couldn't. His voice wasn't working, his legs were jelly. His breathing quickened and started to echo through the microphone, and then he couldn't take it anymore. Natsuo saw only black as the world collapsed around him.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Dread.

That's what Rui felt after what had just transpired. Kajita had totally made things worse again, and Natsuo called her his _sister._ While true, that's a certain distinction she didn't really want at the moment, and the look in his eyes when seeing her near Kajita was empty. She hated seeing them like that but things were going so quickly and she didn't have a chance to talk. He said they'd speak after his public engagement but she really wanted to have things settled soon.

Approaching the entryway to the showroom floor to step through and watch him sign books, she was quite confused. Taking a closer look Natsuo was down on the ground with a paramedic hovering over him, and guests were being shown out. This set her into a panic, a complete indescribable terror ran through her and she wondered if this is how Hina felt when Natsuo took the knife. She quickly ran to approach before security went to intercept, Rui called out "We're family, that's my brother! What's going on!" she was crying and the security gave her an inquisitive look as she was yelling at them in Japanesse. Finally, a woman she recognized from as Hotel staff spoke with them and the pressure on Rui relented, allowing her to let out a small sigh.

The woman then approached her directly and said "I'm Kimmy, his translator while he's here. I'm not sure what happened but there's an ambulance on the way. If you're family we can see to it you ride in the Ambulance with him." Rui merely nodded while stifling a sob, unsure of what else she could do.

The ambulance arrived shortly after, and Natsuo was loaded in. He was unconscious and had a pained look to his face, but for now it didn't feel like he was in any extreme danger. Kimmy explained to the paramedics the relation, and so they insisted she go with them to translate more complicated phrases for

Rui. As they drove, Rui held his hand tightly hoping he'd be okay when he opened his eyes. Natsuo looked at her now, truly looked at her, and tears trailed to his eyes. He opened his mouth to say "Made you cry again. I'm such an idiot. I'm sorry Rui." Hearing this choked her up, but for right now she needed to be strong, so after drying her tears she said "Natsuo, you're the one in an ambulance. I have no idea what's going on but you don't need to apologize for this. Now you look exhausted. Close your eyes and get some rest, so we can figure out what's going on." She quickly added, "With you…. And with Us." Nodding he laid his head bach, gave her a tight squeeze, and closed his eyes to rest once more.

A/N: I want to thank everyone who has read or reviewed. To address one point about Natsuo being passive aggressive. The last encounter they had that involved Jealousy he made several passive agressive comments about Kajita, and Rui not being dependent. He's jealous and thus acting different.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

If you asked her to describe herself, Impatient typically wouldn't be a word Rui would use. After all, patience was an inherent condition of being a chef. Lots of times you'd mess up what you were trying to cook, and without being able to tough it out; things wouldn't work. Just thinking this made her sad; if she'd applied this logic to their relationship maybe things wouldn't be like this. Normally she was extremely patient, however, this was different, and she was silently chastised herself for it. Unable to do anything but sit beside Natsuo as he rested while Doctors she can't understand clearly run tests had been excruciating, she was feeling really really impatient. Nevermind the fact that there were about one million things she wanted to ask him, and never mind the fact that this whole situation was ridiculous, she was starting to feel mental fatigue.

This made her stop and think for a minute. If this is how she was feeling in the face of all this, what on earth was he going through? The first thing this idiot said when waking up in an ambulance was "sorry for making you cry again," and of course remembering this made her teary eyed once more. This wasn't like her; sure she was emotional but never this much. With everything going on she was starting to feel like Hina-nee. She was broken from her thoughts by a soft "hey" coming from Natsuo.

Rui wiped her tears, and smiled really big at him replying "Hey there. How are you?" Natsuo leaned up out of his laying down position and grabbed her hand and said "I'm doing a lot better now. I'm really not sure what happened. I was… just so upset I guess." Rui just shook her head slightly, of course he was. All of this intense internal debate she'd been having with herself about his true intentions in coming here over the last few days had been silenced in that statement alone. A lot of her questions had seemingly been answered in the shortest, and yet, most meaningful way. Finally she smiled at him, "I know you were. I've given it a lot of thought and I don't think either of us handled me leaving very well. I do think it was important, but part of me regrets ever leaving you."

Natsuo squeezed her hand a little tighter before saying "No, you were right. I was being very inconsiderate of you. I shouldn't have confided in another woman, and even after you warned me I was naive. I want you to know Rui, truly know, you are the only woman on earth for me. I know you have that guy you're working with now, but I have to be open about this. I came all this way for you, just you. I wanted to show you I'd fight, because I love you. On the day I arrived I saw you kiss him and my hopes kind of fell. I didn't know what to do anymore."

Rui began to laugh somewhat earnestly, before cupping a hand to his cheek and saying, "Natsuo, there is nothing going on between Kajita and me. I told you this before, and it remains true. Did you really think I could so easily move on from the man I love? He kissed me to confess and I heard your shout. I went to find you and found what was dropped." and she proceeded to return to him his small black box and necklace. Natsuo blushed and replied, "Honestly I didn't know what to think…" Rui looked on and noticed he was now extremely flushed, and sweat was beginning to trickle his forehead. "Natsuo? Are you okay?"

She was startled as he flung the covers off his leg and ran across so he was next to her. Without saying anything else he dropped onto one knee, grabbed her hand, and bowed his head. Rui was in total shock; and used her free hand to cover her now agape mouth. Could he be…?

Natsuo grunted lightly before looking up at her with furious determination, and a resolve he'd only shown when writing. He declared "Rui Tachibana, I know our situation is completely and totally weird. It's probably a million to one odds or even higher, the thought that anyone could ever end up in the kind of relationship we did, but I've never ever regretted it. It really feels like destiny if you think about it. I know it won't be easy to explain to everyone but our love is all that's important to me right now. I love everything about you, the way you cook, the way you care, the way you pout. You picked up the pieces of my life when I was down, you cared for me when I was lying to you. You dealt with so much of my crap and I haven't been the best to you. That will change though, because if you'll have me I promise to be the best version of myself for the rest of our lives. I promise we can live together, and be a family, and I promise to never ignore your advice again. Will you make me the happiest man in the world and marry me, Rui?"


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Ruis head was internally spinning at the revelation of everything that's just come to light. Natsuo just said they could live together & he proposed to her. Gosh she must look like an idiot staring at him dead panned with her mouth slightly ajar, his determined eyes fading every so slightly as the seconds tick down as he awaits her reply.

Should she say yes? Rui had no doubt she still loved him deeply, and with this and the trip to America it was abundantly clear he still very much felt the same about her. He also used a word that triggered something inside of her, _destiny, _which is what she wanted to believe. After all, after Hina left him he got over her and moved on. Deep down she was always afraid he'd move on from her had she left. That was the obsession she surmised, but with this they could be equal. Natsuo was ready to fight for them and ignore all the detractors. They were going to make their long ago promise come true and be a family; not like step siblings but husband and wife. She noticed he gulped before throwing her arms around his neck and she simply said "Yes." His face lit up with such a bright smile and a few tears escaped onto her shoulder before he leaned back and they kissed. All the pain that had gone through them both seemed to vanish, and his kisses still made her heart dance. She was so happy to have him back.

They held their loving embrace on the floor near his hospital bed for a few minutes until they heard a grunt from Kimmy who was here to explain "Natsuo had a severe anxiety attack that triggered a mild arrhythmia. Fortunately the doctors don't think he's at any risk of a repeat result; and recommend he take some preparations before publically meeting fans again. He's being discharged now. Policy is he needs to go out on wheelchair, so ma'am if you'd do the honors we'll be heading out shortly."

Rui pushed and they exited the hospital, and the morning sun was shining down. Natsuo averted his gaze to block the light as the Limo was out waiting for him. He arose from the wheelchair and smiled sweetly at Rui before taking her by the hand and opening her door for her on at the back of the Limo. He then walked around where Charles was ready with his door and joined his now fiance in the backseat; and quickly went to hold her hand again. Natsuo finally turned to her and said "I want you to come stay with me until I head back to Japan. Where do we need to go now to make that happen?" Rui thought for a second, and conferred the address of the place she was staying. It would be a pretty simple matter for her to go get her things and then wherever Natsuo was going to be, she would also be there. This thought made her smile as Charles merely nodded and began to head towards the location. For some reason the air had a bit of weight to it, both wanted to say so much and yet didn't need to at the same time, but Natsuo finally broke the silence by saying "I pray I'm not dreaming." In response she leaned over and kissed him and smiled.

After a while they pulled up to the apartment building she stayed at, and as Natsuo went to get out she held his hand and said "Wait here; we don't want anyone to come up to you and it won't take me long to get my things. I'll be right back." Natsuo looked a bit skeptical but remained sitting, and Rui added "If you really feel bad about not helping carry my stuff you're welcome to unload it at the hotel." He merely smiled at her and said "Go on then, I'll be waiting."

Rui entered the hallway her apartment was located and saw someone standing outside the door. Upon a closer look it was Kajita, looking quite distraught. He noticed her approaching and said "Tachibana San i was worried. Daniella said you didn't come home last night. Is everything okay?"

Rui was officially mad, not because what he was doing was bad or malicious, but because it's out of nowhere. "We're co workers, and maybe friends at best. What I do outside of work isn't a concern of yours. You've been almost clingy when it comes to me, appearing before me on three separate occasions outside of work ever since that night in the park. Now let me by, I have to change." Kajita, almost like a tree, remained rooted in place and said "I feel like you're being inconsiderate of how I feel. Recently you've made me feel all sorts of things I'd never felt before. I want to get to know you better. I think I'm falling for you." Rui kept her expression tight, not allowing any hints to escape and said "I don't like you that way. I love another, I've loved another the entire time I've known you. You aren't a terrible person; mistakes don't define you. I'm sure you'll find a woman who will make you happy, but that woman isn't going to be me however, not now, or in the future. That's the last thing I'll say on the topic. Please move out of the way." Kajita looked stunned, clearly he had more to say but could read the mood well enough to know she wasn't going to entertain the conversation further. He walked down the hall without another way allowing Rui to enter her apartment.

It took her a bit to gather everything and she realized Daniella wasn't in, so she wrote a note and left it on the desk; promising to call later. With that she came down with her belongings to find Charles there to greet her. Smiling she allowed him to load her bags before re entering the limo with Natsuo. He said "I saw Kajita coming out of there, he didn't look happy. Is everything okay?" Rui grabbed his hand and looked him in the eyes and said "Kajita was falling for me, but I never felt the same. That night in central park i was planning on telling him, setting things straight, when he kissed me. I guess you saw that; which is what started this confusion, but it's settled now. I let him down nice and easy." Natsuo looked relieved, and after a moment said "You were right you know… about Miyabi. I'm sorry I didn't believe you. Just before I came here she kissed me during a play, and then later confessed. I told her you were the only one in my heart and she implored me to fight for you. I can't promise to be perfect but I won't let another situation like that happen again if I can help it." Rui smiled gratefully and threw her arms around his neck before giving him another kiss. Somehow she knew now, everything would be alright.


End file.
